HTS Interiors, a leading interior design company in UAE, said it has been awarded a contract to manage the interior design and fit out works for Basanti & Company, a 5,881-sq-ft restaurant project coming up within the Bluewaters Island project in Dubai.

An extension of Mumbai's Basanti & Company in Dubai, the 5,881-sq-ft flagship restaurant project is the brainchild of Jetty Ventures, an UAE-based investment company.

The restaurant is a specialist in Indian cuisine and is hugely popular in Mumbai with rave reviews from food lovers and critics, said a statement from HTS Interiors.

The HTS Interiors team has conceptualized its Dubai wing keeping the Meraas aesthetics in mind while staying true to the Basanti & Co. brand idea, it added.

On the contract win, Nitin Nadukandy, the founder, and chief executive of HTS Interiors, said: "Jetty Ventures, the brainchild behind Basanti & Company's Dubai chapter wanted us to focus on creating sophisticated interiors without losing the restaurant's eclectic appeal."

"This was important because the target audience for Basanti & Co. will be the millennial crowd with a preference for cool and contemporary settings. We have re-interpreted the Mumbai concept to align it with Bluewaters Island's aesthetic sensibility, but included Basanti & Co.'s original summer color scheme," he noted.

On the new design, Laurika Muller, the design director and project-in-charge for the Basanti & Company project, said: "Conceptually, we wanted to tell the story of Basanti, the lead character from the 1975 Hindi cult movie, Sholay, after which the restaurant is named. This is a story of a journey, destinations and experiences."

"Thus, the story starts with the approach to the restaurant via the outside seating area, which is an informal, relaxed space," explained Muller.

"This informal character is also reflected in the design look and feel of the ground floor interior.  However, we've also incorporated a few formal materials to slightly change the look and feel - as a phase-over between an informal exterior and the more formal interior on the first floor," she added.

Basanti & Company will be a part of the ambitious Bluewaters Island project - a manmade island that shall serve as a modern, family-oriented fun destination with premium apartments, penthouses, townhouses, and over 200 retail and dining concepts.

"The stair case connecting the ground floor and 1st floor was designed to be an experiential space (continuing the journey) with a "Juliet" balcony (a rest point) overlooking the beach and boats," noted Muller.

"The first floor has been designed with six mini-destination experiences to suit a variety of client's seating preferences.  Although our design approach was very conceptual and in line with client requirements, we've also tried to capture the true identity of Dubai - Diversity," she added.

HTS Interiors is a premier custom fit out company offering a wide range of interior design services. Their creative designs and professional services make them one of the most sought-after interior design companies in Dubai.

Some of the group's prestigious projects in the UAE include Prime Minister Office (Emirates Tower), Rivera Mall, Boeing Office, Mekong Anantara, Adventz and Seagrill Fairmont.-TradeArabia News Service